This invention relates to a method and tool for exfoliating the coating of a coated optical fiber and, more particularly, to a method of exfoliating the coating layer on the outer periphery of an optical fiber, in which layer, a fibrous material is longitudinally contained, e.g., a reinforced coating optical fiber, and, a tool for exfoliating such a coating of the optical fiber.
A general reinforced coating optical fiber is, as shown in FIG. 1, constructed in its cross section, and is manufactured as hereinafter described.
Fibrous materials 4, 4, 4, . . . such as glass fiber, carbon fiber or the like are applied longitudinally on the outer periphery of a primary coating layer 2 formed on an optical fiber 1 and impregnated with the thermosetting resin 3. The thermosetting resin 3 containing the fibrous materials 4, 4, 4, . . . is thermally set to form a predetermined coating layer 5. The coated optical fiber thus manufactured has the coating layer 5 in which the fibrous material is contained, and thereby exhibits excellent mechanical properties and temperature characteristic.
Since the coating layer 5 of the coated optical fiber has excessively high mechanical properties, the work of exfoliating the coating of the optical fiber at the time of connecting the optical fiber cannot be performed smoothly, and a variety of problems occur, e.g., accidental damage to the optical fiber 1, early wear of a cutting tool for exfoliating the coating of the optical fiber, etc.